Hello all,
I usually stay pretty silent around these forums, but thought it might be beneficial to explain a little bit about what Wakeboard Church is, what we do, and how you can choose to be a part of it. I'm not looking to start any religious debates or argue with anyone about beliefs (but am always happy to have conversations). I simply want to inform about our organization. With that said:
Wakeboard Church is a non-profit, parachurch (interdenominational with no church affiliation), ministry for the wake sport culture. It is our goal to share Christ's love with the world of wakeboarding, wakeskating, and wakesurfing. We do this through building relationships, accepting people as they are, and walking alongside them no matter their church background, religious persuasions, or current state or quality of life. Everyone is welcome and everyone is accepted.
We currently have 12 chapters in 9 states, with over 1,300 people reached in 2013 alone. All of our chapters host weekly wakeboard outings in order to progress in our skills and build friendships. At the end of each outing, the chapter leader gives a short and simple message from the bible about who God is, what He has done, and how that affects us.
In addition to our weekly chapter meetings, we also host several events, contests, camps, and conferences throughout the year, always with the intention of providing a positive environment for wakeboarders to have fun, meet new people, and ask/answer questions about faith. Our motto is Love God, Love Others, Love Wakeboarding.
If you would like to learn more about Wakeboard Church, you can always contact me (Mark Heger) directly or visit our website (we are in the process of redoing it). If you would like to find a chapter near you, start a chapter at your lake or cable park, or get involved in a deeper level (prayers, resources, finances) we would love to talk with you. We offer tax exemptions for any and all donations and also have several sponsorship packages that we offer to companies who desire to be involved.
I hope that you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend.
God Bless,

As a long-time member of this site and of Wakeboard Church, I just wanted to give my personal endorsement.

Mark is a stand up guy (and a killer rider too) as are the folks behind this ministry. They help support a lot of events in their chapter areas, and are actively involved in the wakeboard community as a whole. I've personally witnessed many lives changed directly by WBC. It's a great place to fellowship and grow with other believers, and it's also a great place to ask questions about the faith/bible if you are skeptical or even agnostic.

Also checking in as a long time follower of Wakeworld and Chapter Leader for Wakeboard Church. Most of the people who attend my chapter in Nebraska came as beginners. It has been great to share both my LOVE for wakeboarding and my faith with them on a weekly basis. It is a great opportunity to reach out to riders regardless of their beliefs.

Seeing as you bring it up....quite a lot. What exactly are the "donations" used for in this instance? Regular churches use their donations for upkeep of the church itself as well as salaries and a host of other expenses. The cynic in me says this is just an excuse to fund some wakeboarding or at the very least a way to go wakeboarding on a Sunday without feeling guilty. Rock on though. The freedom to do this is what makes this country great.

Seeing as you bring it up....quite a lot. What exactly are the "donations" used for in this instance? Regular churches use their donations for upkeep of the church itself as well as salaries and a host of other expenses. The cynic in me says this is just an excuse to fund some wakeboarding or at the very least a way to go wakeboarding on a Sunday without feeling guilty. Rock on though. The freedom to do this is what makes this country great.

Hey Stuart, sorry that you feel I ask for donations often...that wasn't my intention at all. But you bring up a great question. Running Wakeboard Church (as with any non profit) requires a great deal of work in various areas. And unfortunately for my wakeboarding career, I constantly have to spend more time running the organization than I do actually wakeboarding.
We have numerous expenses as a national organization that require funding...website upkeep and maintenance, funding for contests and events, camp scholarships, legal fees, and insurance to protect both our boat drivers and our riders just to name a few.
But just to be clear, I am not asking for thoughtless and random donations...I'm simply providing an opportunity for those who want to be involved to get more information about how they can partner with us.

Seeing as you bring it up....quite a lot. What exactly are the "donations" used for in this instance? Regular churches use their donations for upkeep of the church itself as well as salaries and a host of other expenses....

Wow. This is what you took from his post? Out of a 5 paragraph post he mentions "financial" once and "donations" once and you call him out for mentioning "donations" one time and mis represent his statements by claiming that he brings it up "quite a lot". So basically you have no interest in what he is doing and want to try to put it in a negative light without being direct and just stating that you think it is a sham. Bummer.

Mark, thanks for what you are doing. I sent you an email and will be checking your site for updates.

Willy - No, this is Jarret. Not sure who you are thinking about...sorry.

DatTexasBoy - I don't know if I would say that Randall is affiliated with WBC, but he did come out a few years ago to the Lake Grapevine chapter to ride and share his story. While I am name dropping, others have done the same thing like Emily Copeland, AJ Racinelli, Kirby Leismann, among others. It's a great place to ride, fellowship, and sometimes meet the pros.

Well I know very little about Wakeboard Church but was at Hydrous at the end of October and was introduced to this GREAT organization. I had been told there was a "Less Than 540" contest the first night we got there. We were told we were welcome to ride in it but since it was my first time at the cable I opted to just watch.... ha. Neways after the contest everyone gathered together( which I thought they were going to announce winners) and Mark gave a great devotion( I had no idea these event was church related). Apparently, They had a contest, with different formats every Thursday in October with a 10 dollar entry fee. At the end of the devotion, Mark made a wonderful illustration. He told everyone that they would be getting all their money back, as if Jesus was wiping their slate clean..Then on top of that, he gave equal prize money to each person in the contest, symbolizing that they are all equal whether they landed every trick or crashed on every one..Jesus sees us the same....

just a little example of what this organization does.... I was very impressed and blessed

I just sent out the annual Wakeboard Church Christmas e-Newsletter (kind of our end of the year update), and would love to forward it on to anyone interested in receiving it. If you would like it email to you, shoot me an email with XMas as the subject to WakeboardChurch@gmail.com
Happy Holidays everyone!
Mark

sounds interesting. you guys have any affiliation with wake the world? supposedly there's a wake the world event coming to griggs in columbus next year

Willyt, There is a plan to bring wake the world to Griggs in 2013. I went down to the WV event in 2012. I'm working with some of my friends that are members at SBC. to put it together. I will have more info after the first of the year.